I have lived on the same block for almost 5 years. In that time my roomies and I all came to know a man we began to refer to a "The Pirate" a free spirited 60 year old Irish man the folks on the block called Danny Boy. He was vibrant and full of life but struggled with substance abuse. Danny Boy was the kind of guy who was always chatting with anyone who would listen. Most of my conversations with him involved his concern for my safety walking home from the subway at night and telling the history of the families and buildings on the block. Danny was not PC and said lots of ridiculous and funny things. Lots of people on the block thought of him as the lovable and somewhat annoying neighborhood veteran.
On the morning of Memorial Day my roomies and I all headed out to the grocery store to stock up on vegan goodies for this BBQ we were going to. The pirate seemed annoyed at our rush and in a teasing voice said "Well hello ladies!" We all quickly said hi and went our merry way. We got home that night at about 10:30pm to find that a few hours earlier the Pirate had been playing with the kids on the block splashing in the fire hydrant, he went to his mother's apartment to change his clothes but she was out and had locked him out, because of his substance abuse I guess this was routine. He went to climb the fire escape to get in to his room and get clothes but because he was wet slipped and fell to the basement level. His story on this earth ends there.
Danny Boy is mourned by all of us on this block. And my lesson, the moment is fleeting. One minute you are here but the next moment provides no guarantees. The goodness in Danny Boys story is that whatever his struggles he must have had a strong heart to give love to everyone and serve people in his own way. Nothing extinguished his love. I can't help but think about what he would have been capable of if he had truly conquered his addictions.
As for those of us who manage to finish this day with breath still in our bodies, how will we treat the moments we have? Even when life is hard can we be faithful? When people are mean can we hold on to our goodness? When all you are used to is the next minute arriving without fail it takes true zealousness for life (not fear of death) to treat each moment as if it were the last note of an epic love song. And remember that by fanning the flame of the gifts of the spirit in us we are silently giving permission to those around us to do the same. That's what Danny Boys life did for me and I am grateful I did not completely miss the moment and I hope to be more and more present in the ones I am given however many that may be.
Namaste and God Bless Y'all.
"I'll let you go . . . but let me tell you something . . ." The Pirate (Danny Boy)
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